The Love of a Family
by RikaFurude13
Summary: AU Odin found Loki on Jotunheim, thinking that he was Laufey's son. Familial bonds are created in the Odinson household through the years. When Loki learns of his heritage the first time, he is devastated, but the family pulls through. But what happens when Odin's truth is not the actual truth? Maybe Thor/Loki, eventually.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Frigga stared, wide-eyed, at the babe in her husband's arms. He had just returned victorious from the war with Jotunheim, not having killed the ferocious King Laufey but being able to form a sort of truce until further diplomatic actions could be taken. The baby was about to be slaughtered by several of his own warriors. Odin couldn't stand to see such an innocent child get killed, and, after having called back the offending soldiers and taken the baby into his arms, he vaguely wondered how many other innocent Jotuns have been killed in this horrible war. He didn't get to dwell on it much further, however, before he watched in amazement as the Jotun skin turned into the pale skin of an Asgardian, and he couldn't fight back a tug at his heartstrings when the small child cuddled into Odin's grasp and started idly messing with the cords of his armor, little eyes closed.

It was then that Odin decided to take the baby. It was incredibly small for a Jotun child; most Jotun newborns were the size of an Asgardian toddler, and this baby was even smaller than a baby born on Asgard. Surely, a runt born to anyone would have been considered wrong in Jotunheim. He had seen the markings on the baby and knew it was a child in the royal family, son of Laufey, no doubt. If he was left in the temple to die, then it was safe to assume that there would be nothing to come of it if he took that baby. Perhaps, later on in his life, the secret Jotun prince could be used to unite the kingdoms of Asgard and Jotunheim into an eternal peace.

This is what Odin told himself. This is what he tried to believe, although he knew in his heart that he loved the baby already. It took all he could to steel himself to order his men back to the Bifrost site, to return home to the golden land of Asgard.

He had greeted Heimdall hastily, without looking into the amber eyes of the gatekeeper, even though he knew that Heimdall had full knowledge of his actions on Jotunheim. He rode Sleipnir back across the rainbow bridge into Asgard, immediately greeting the people while keeping the Jotun baby sleeping, hidden in his cloak. After about half an hour of receiving praise from the people of Asgard, he entered the palace and went straight to his and Frigga's room, where he knew she would be waiting in worry.

He thought himself quite lucky that Thor had not been present on the way to his bedroom, for he knew Thor would have kept him busy for a long time, and he didn't want to have to risk the baby awakening and having to explain it to his curious and talkative son. Odin already dreaded having to explain the baby to his wife, let alone his five-year-old son, who would not be happy at all that he had taken a child of Jotunheim.

So, here he was. Presenting the sleeping child to his beautiful wife as she stared at the baby in amazement. The look on her face was indescribable and Odin didn't know how she would react. She could immediately berate and scold him for taking the child, or could immediately assumed he'd committed adultery, or even, Valhalla forbid, hurt the child itself.

What happened was something that Odin did not expect. After a few moments, her face turned to one of unbridled compassion and a deep love as she reached out a finger and stroked the velvet cheek of the baby. Odin mentally sighed in relief and smiled as she held her arms out so he could give the child to her. It was a truly beautiful sight, seeing his wife cradle the little baby to her breast as it slept soundly.

"Oh, Odin... you have been very naughty, haven't you?" she asked, and for a moment Odin panicked before seeing the twinkle of mischief in her eye and he knew she was joking.

"I found him... abandoned in the harsh wilderness of Jotunheim. A few of my soldiers were about to kill the babe before I stopped them. He's the son of Laufey... I think."

Frigga couldn't mask the surprise that adorned her face. "You took a prince?"

"I'm not even certain that the baby is Laufey's son. The marks looked royal to me, but I didn't get a close enough look, and, the more I think on it, Laufey's marks may have been different. But he's definitely royal, of some type."

"Why was he abandoned?"

"He's small. So small. Perhaps Jotuns think of it as a weakness. It wouldn't surprise me. You would not expect him to be a giant's offspring."

Frigga looked down at the baby before looking back up. "Why is his skin like an Aesir's?"

"It changed before my eyes after I picked him up. I don't know why."

Frigga stroked the baby's cheek again before voicing her next question. "What is his name, then?"

"I do not know that either, my love. You can name him, if you wish."

Frigga hmm'd under her breath, looking at the fine craftsmanship on the clothing the baby wore, feeling the softness of the animal skins as she thought. "I like Loki."

Odin smiled and sat down next to her on the bed. "That is a beautiful name."

"It's the name of a type of rare precious stone, glittering and green, that can only be found on Jotunheim. It has many magical properties and, along with kota and anomite, is one of the substances that sorceresses yearn to be able to enchant at least once in their lifetimes. I've found and used kota and anomite before, but I have never obtained loki. Perhaps I have finally found it."

Odin smiled. "Fitting then. He definitely seems like a rare creature."

"Yes," Frigga agreed, and then shushed him hurriedly as the baby, Loki, began to stir in his new mother's arms. He made a quiet mewling sound before opening his bright eyes, the emerald making Frigga sure of her choice of name for the baby. He stared right at her and she smiled warmly, getting the feeling that he perfectly understood who she was.

"Hello, Loki," she said, refraining from using a sort of cooing voice, for two reasons: his eyes alone seemed so intelligent and _adult _that it didn't feel right to baby-talk him, and because she read somewhere that cooing at babies made them less smart, and she sometimes felt guilty for Thor's apparently obtuse manner because she baby-talked him. Loki merely blinked and began to look around curiously at his setting and Frigga smiled. He noticed Odin and looked at him intensely also, seemingly unphased by the gaping hole where his right eye had been, where Laufey had ripped it out. Odin smiled cautiously, but didn't say anything, not entirely sure what to say to a baby who probably couldn't understand anything yet.

After a few moments of their staring contest, Odin won when Loki directed his gaze back to Frigga. She stroked his cheek and he playfully tried grabbing at her finger. She couldn't help but chuckle at his friskiness and he stopped, content with gripping the cloth of her sleeve instead.

Frigga looked up to Odin. "We must tell Thor he has a new little brother."

Odin inwardly cringed. "Oh, right. Do we... tell him that he is Jotun?"

Frigga frowned. "I don't want anybody to treat Loki like he's different, especially Thor."

"The people of the kingdom will want an explanation. And you haven't been pregnant. They will know he's adopted from somewhere," Odin said.

Frigga frowned more deeply, in thought. "Ever since you went off to war, I've been so worried about you. I kept myself shut in my room. It's easy to pretend that I was pregnant, not even my maid saw me too much while you were gone. She kept the meals right outside the door, for she knew I was grieving. The pregnancy explanation won't be easily disproved."

Odin smiled in relief. "That's good thinking."

"But," she pointed a finger at her husband. "This does not mean we can shield Thor and Loki from the truth forever. Once they have established a good, strong brotherly bond, you _must _tell Loki and Thor of Loki's Jotun heritage. If you wait until you can't keep it from him any more, it's bound to turn to disaster. The rest of the kingdom need not know Loki is adopted, but Loki himself cannot be shrouded in this lie for his entire life."

Odin immediately lost his grin at Frigga's words and seemed to grow older, weary with the responsibility of his actions. "What if it still hurts them? All Thor knows about Jotuns is that they are uncivilized, savage monsters. Loki will believe he himself is a monster."

"Don't tell stories about their cruel side then. There are plenty of good things about Jotuns and their culture. Tell about those."

Odin sighed. "What about Thor? What if he does not accept the idea of a new brother?"

"He will, in time. Besides, how adorable is Loki? You can't not love him." Frigga began stroking the baby again, who was preoccupied with Frigga's sleeve, oblivious to the conversation concerning him.

Odin looked down at the baby Loki and couldn't help but smile, also, petting the child's head, all the while dreading the inevitable conversation with Thor.

"Now go to the healing center, now. For your eye and other injuries you have obtained."

"It's fine, really."

"Go! And then we'll talk to Thor."

Odin sighed at his wife's stubbornness, giving Loki one last pet and a kiss to his wife before leaving the room.

Frigga smiled happily and began rocking the baby, humming a song to him as he began to fall asleep once more.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: I typed an author's note for the last chapter, but I suppose it didn't show up. Anywho, I am very grateful for the reviews/favorites/follows for the first chapter! I know that Sleipnir is supposedly Loki's son in Norse Myth, but I decided to not follow too closely to those stories because it is just so strange in this context. Besides, what majestic steed would Odin ride? Eight-legged horses are not born every day! Hope you all enjoy the next chapter! I hate that it's so short, but at least it's something! The next chapter should be out soon; hopefully I'll update at least twice this week, because I have no life outside of school anyway. Feedback welcome! Enjoy!

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Chapter Two

Frigga and Odin had called Thor up to their bedroom and were now waiting, albeit nervously, for their rowdy five-year-old son to enter. Odin had his eye bandaged and Frigga had changed into a new dress to make herself look less worrisome, now that her husband was home. Loki had also had a change of clothes without any fuss; Frigga had found a few old baby outfits of Thor's, replacing his old animal-skin clothing of Jotunheim. Loki was now nestled in her arms, sleeping quietly, though Frigga knew it was not for long.

A few moments later, Thor entered the room and gave a cry of delight at seeing his father, running over and barreling into him excitedly.

"Father! Father! What was it like? How many Jotuns did you kill? Did they try to kidnap you and eat you up?" Thor asked, all in one breath, in a loud volume that made Loki stir awake but he did not make a sound, gaze fixated on the oblivious Thor.

Odin chuckled and patted Thor's back. "It was a noble fall. We will make peace with Jotunheim tomorrow."

"Peace?" Thor looked confused. "But they should all be destroyed!"

"Now, Thor, that is not the nature of war. We do not kill another race off just because we don't like them."

"But they are monsters, father! They tried to take over Midgard!"

"Their actions were wrong, yes, but they did not know any better. The source of their power is taken away from them, and I will discuss a treaty with King Laufey on the morrow. There is another reason why I called you here, my son," Odin said, glancing to Frigga. Loki gave a quiet coo to himself, inspecting the fabric of Frigga's new dress wearily, and Thor finally realized that it wasn't just him, his father and his mother in the room.

"What... is that?" Thor asked, dumbfounded. Odin smiled.

"That's a baby, Thor. He is your little brother. Your mother gave birth to him last night and he is finally learning about the world. You will be a good brother to him, won't you, Thor?"

Thor didn't answer, and just stared at Loki in poorly concealed wonder. He got off of his father's lap and crawled over next Frigga, looking down at the baby. His parents looked at him, trying to gauge his reaction. Thor slowly touched Loki's head and gasped when Loki grabbed his thumb, inspecting it. A smile began to appear on his face.

"Father, he is so curious. What is his name?"

"Loki," Odin answered.

"Loki," repeated Thor quietly. He moved his thumb so it was like he was shaking hands with his little brother. "Nice to meet you. I'm Thor. I'm your big brother, and I will always get most of the snacks."

Frigga chuckled. "Wait a few years, and then try to tell him that."

Thor smiled. "Can I hold him?"

Frigga thought for a moment and then nodded. "I don't see why not." She directed Thor against the headboard of the bed and positioned his arms just so. She then gingerly placed Loki in Thor's arms and watched them. Thor laughed freely.

"He is messing with my clothing, mother!"

"Shh, not too loud. And yes, he enjoys that."

Thor giggled again and pet Loki's head. "Why does he not look like father, you or me?"

Frigga held back her nervousness at the question. "Sometimes a child doesn't look like the parents who conceived them. It doesn't mean anything. Come to think of it, I believe I had a green-eyed sister, with dark honey-brown hair. Some of Loki's qualities could be expressed in the same way your aunt's were."

"Ah," Thor nodded, comprehending the explanation. "I don't care. There are too many blond babies anyway. It would be so boring."

Frigga chuckled. "I'm glad you think so."

"When can I start to play with him?"

"You have to wait until he's a little bigger, son," Odin answered. "If you try to play your games with him right now, you'll hurt him. Make sure your friends aren't too rough with him either."

Thor nodded again. "I'll make sure Volstagg doesn't eat him!" he said jovially, causing Frigga to make a face of concern.

"Well... now I know what your friends are like..." she said teasingly and Thor laughed.

"I like my little brother, mother! When he gets old enough, I'm going to teach him to fight and eat a whole chicken leg, and how to drink a whole mug of apple juice without having to stop once!"

"You are very wise, Thor, and will teach Loki many things," Odin smiled, patting Thor's head before getting up. "However, to teach, you need sleep. So off to bed."

"I'm not tired! I want to hold Loki some more!"

"You will be able to spend time with him tomorrow. But now, you are going to sleep," Odin said in a no-nonsense tone. Thor pouted and Frigga took Loki into her arms as Thor jumped up.

"Good night, mother! Good night, father!" he said happily, earning a hug from his father and a kiss from his mother. Thor beckoned for Frigga to bend down a little so he could kiss Loki's head.

"Good night, Loki," he whispered to the baby before scampering out of the room.

Frigga sighed and sat back down. "That went so much better than expected."

Odin nodded in agreement. "The servants have gotten Thor's old crib from the storage wing and cleaned it," he said before going to retrieve the item that was just outside the bedroom door and dragging it into the bedroom. Frigga kissed Loki's head tenderly as he played with her necklace. She went over to the crib.

"Be a good little brother, for Thor, alright?" she asked of him. She then kissed him again and set him down into the soft blankets, covering him up. He fell asleep almost instantly and Frigga smiled warmly.

"Thank you, Odin."

Odin looked at her in surprise. "It was nothing."

"No, it was everything," she kissed him on the lips and they went to bed.

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AN: Next chapter is very important: The diplomacy meeting between Laufey and Odin. I know it sounds boring, but it's really important! Hope you liked this installment!


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